


My Sweetest Downfall

by aigroe



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alcohol, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-20
Updated: 2013-01-20
Packaged: 2017-11-26 06:30:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/647587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aigroe/pseuds/aigroe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Rose decides the romantic tension is simply too much to bear, and sets about trying to loosen Kanaya's inhibitions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	My Sweetest Downfall

Kanaya had always held Rose in high opinion. Well, perhaps not right from the start, not when the girl spoke strangely similarly to John and didn’t seem to be very interesting at all – no, not always. But she thinks sometimes _a very long time_ is better than _always_. A very long time means there has been change, allows Kanaya to imagine their relationship as a living thing, a huge tree reaching up to the light. She wants to climb Rose, to see the wrinkles in her bark, to watch sunlight shine on her. She wants to water her and tend to her and spend hours listening to nothing but the smallest sounds she makes, the soft rustle of her leaves grander than any symphony.

She is entirely infatuated with the human girl, and it has taken her a sweep to admit it to herself.

Out of the corner of her eye she watches Rose read. Her eyes skim the page, rest a second to digest a fact and then leap onwards. The girl swings her legs absentmindedly then fiddles with her hair. Her fidgeting does not detract from her single-minded focus. Kanaya thinks she wants Rose to examine her like that, then scolds herself.

“Kanaya. You haven’t turned the page in half an hour.” Rose is smiling slightly, lips black with clumsily-applied makeup standing out against her lightly freckled porcelain skin. “Surely you’re not tired?”

“I am…” She toys with the book to give her some time. “Distracted.”

Rose quirks an eyebrow. “By what?”

Kanaya would rather face twenty imperial drones than tell her that. “Oh, just thinking.”

Rose tilts her head to the side and appraises the troll in front of her. Her expression is inscrutable. Kanaya feels she is being judged, and does not know how to present herself. She struggles to meet Rose’s eyes.

Eventually Rose shrugs and stops. “I’m going to see what Dave’s up to. See you around, right?”

“Of course!” Kanaya winces at her tone. Too cheery, too needy. Her skin is grey but she may as well be transparent. She feels paper thin, like words are printed on her body. Rose can read her like an open book. She always could.

(Perhaps not always. But for a very long time.)

\--

Rose finds Karkat playing one of Dave’s shitty video games, hunched over the controller, tilting with the movement of the skateboard on screen. He doesn’t acknowledge Rose until she plops herself beside him.

“You want to co-op?”

“Sure.” She takes the second controller and pounds away at the game for a few minutes. When they finish the level, however, she doesn’t continue. “Karkat, have I done something to offend Kanaya?”

He snorts derisively. “No.”

“She’s been awfully quiet recently.” She chews her lip.

He turns to her, scowling. “Don’t try manipulating me, Lalonde.”

Rose affects innocence.

He huffs. “I’m not going to be some tool in your nefarious schemes.”

She sighs pointedly. “And I was _so_ hoping the romantic tension between Kanaya and myself could be resolved.”

It’s funny to watch the alien jump from his seat as if stung. “How do you know about that?”

Rose chuckles and he curses.

“Alright, alright,” he grumbles. “I’ll help with whatever your stupid stupid dumb idea is.”

She tries to hold back her enthusiasm and keep a cool face, but it bubbles over and she can’t help leaning forwards with a confidential, salacious air. “I was wondering what it takes to get a troll girl to stop holding back.”

Karkat looks back at her. He has a feeling this won’t go well, but the tension between Rose and Kanaya is getting to everyone on the meteor and someone has to do something about it before those two got moirailzoned for life.

He sighs and gives in, deciding to help Rose see this through to whatever the bitter end would be. Kanaya needs to lose her inhibitions, and Rose might just be the one to help her do so. “Lots and lots of alcohol,” he replies.

Rose’s eyes light up with glee, and the two of them begin to plot.

\--

Kanaya surveys the spread before her. “What is the use of this?”

“It’s a human party.” Karkat shrugs. “They have food and alcohol and dance.”

Kanaya looks at the streamer-bedecked room doubtfully. “And this is considered a good thing?”

“I didn’t fucking invent it.” He grabs a tasteless alchemised mudbeast-stick pastry and stuffs the thing into his mouth whole. Through crumbs spraying everywhere he says, “You should talk to Rose.” Then he wanders off to a corner of the room, where he sits down and glares at nothing. When Kanaya tries to approach him again he glares and says he’s busy partying.

Kanaya doesn’t think she quite understands the concept of human parties, but she is willing to give them a go.

Rose is by the liquor, clutching a glass like it is a lifeline. When Kanaya approaches she starts guiltily. “Oh, hello! Try some wine, it’s lovely!”

 “Really?” Kanaya looks at the drink sceptically. “I thought you disliked it.”

“Not at all. I’m wary of it because of my mother’s problems, but I recognise it as the useful tool for aiding social advancement that it is.”

“Social advancement?”

Rose pauses for a beat, then quickly moves on. “Try some!”

“I really don’t-”

“It could be good for you.” Rose is unusually tense and nervous, but when she says this she smiles and winks mock-confidingly. Kanaya doesn’t know what to think, but this little gesture is reassuring.

She takes the proffered glass and notices that Rose has not touched her own. “Shall we drink together, then?”

“Capital idea.” They clink glasses and both sip. The drink tastes bitter and heady to Kanaya, but she keeps drinking out of a sense of duty. She sees Rose arch her eyebrows in surprise at the taste.

“You like it?”

“Yes.” Rose still looks slightly surprised. “More so than I would have expected.”

Kanaya smiles as she watches Rose drink. She doesn’t really understand this party business, but as long as Rose is happy she is.

Rose notices that Kanaya isn’t drinking. “There’s plenty more where that came from! Don’t be shy!” She gives a nervous little giggle, hiccups, looks shocked, hiccups again and giggles again.

Kanaya watches her dubiously, but takes a polite sip.

As the night wears on Rose grows more and more intoxicated. She keeps trying to get Kanaya to drink but seems to lose track of her own consumption in the attempt to encourage her. Kanaya counts three glasses before she has finished her first.

Rose drunk is an odd prospect. The normally elegant human stumbles over words and stops, distracted, in the middle of sentences. Her gaze wanders erratically but without curiosity. Her eyes are bright and she is more animated than Kanaya has ever seen her, but she lacks finesse and restraint.

“I think you need to sit down,” Kanaya advises when Rose is making determined headway into her fourth drink.

Rose rolls her eyes. “Tosh! I’m perfectly fine! More wine for you, m’lady?”

Kanaya ignores her and steers both of them to the sofa, where Rose plops down with a grunt.

“This stuff tastes really good you should definitely try some I think it would be good for you!” Rose nods enthusiastically at Kanaya. “I am for reals serious right now and I think you should listen to me!”

Kanaya opens her mouth to object, but Karkat sidles towards them holding a sparkling beverage. “Hey Kanaya have you tried champagne it’s this dumb human beverage and it’s really…”

He trails off as he notices her glaring at him. After a few seconds of silence, he sidles away again.

“Rose,” Kanaya says carefully.

The girl grins widely and lays her head on Kanaya’s shoulder, spilling some wine in the process. “I like it when you say my name.”

“Are you trying to get me drunk?”

Rose doesn’t respond.

“Why are you trying to get me drunk?”

Rose looks up at Kanaya. Her breath smells of alcohol and her eyes are slightly glazed. She looks nothing like the Rose Kanaya has grown to know. She is in disarray, a scattering of emotions thrown plain across her face like constellations. But for all their lack of focus her eyes are brighter than they ever have been before, and her words when they spill out sound truer than anything Kanaya has ever heard her say. “Because you clearly want to kiss me and it’s getting frustrating waiting for you to try.”

Kanaya feels her heart stop. The world pulls inwards to a point and all she can see is Rose’s lips, her body, the small movements her chest makes as she breathes, the ski slope curve of her nose and the delicate orchid hue of her eyes.

Rose sighs slightly and closes the gap between them. Her hand clutches the back of Kanaya’s neck and their lips meet, nervous and fumbling. Kanaya is surprised by how warm Rose is, and she is not as soft as Kanaya expected; she has chapped lips and when she clings to Kanaya her fingers dig in.

When they pull apart Kanaya finally thinks she’s feeling some of the effects of the alcohol.

“I love you,” she says suddenly. The words fall out and slot into reality one by one.

Rose smiles like she has a secret. “I loved you first.”

They kiss again, and Kanaya thinks she will love Rose for a very long time.


End file.
